Tim Patrick caught 33 passes for 394 yards last season but projected as the Lions' No. 5 WR this fall with the emergence of Isaac TeSlaa
Isaac TeSlaa is in line for a bigger role than expected after a strong training camp, and his emergence made veteran receiver Tim Patrick expendable.
The Detroit Lions traded Patrick to the Jacksonville Jaguars one day after they cut their roster to 50 players, NFL Network reported. The Lions received a 2026 sixth-round pick in the deal, according to the Associated Press.
Patrick caught 33 passes for 394 yards last season — his first since 2021 because of injuries — while playing primarily as the Lions' No. 3 receiver. He projected as the Lions' No. 5 receiver this fall.
Kalif Raymond played took first-team reps as the team's No. 3 receiver throughout camp, and TeSlaa, a third-round pick, emerged as a dependable target this summer.
"He’s no different than any young player," Lions coach Dan Campbell said of TeSlaa after the team's final preseason game. "He’s just going to have some growing pains and he’s going to continue to get better and better. But I’m very pleased — we’re very pleased with where he’s at after six weeks of camp, cause that’s really what it’s been.
"So I would say, if you took most receivers, he’d be in the upper echelon of those, as far as development. He’s — it’s pretty good. Cause it’s not easy to develop as a receiver in this league and be ready to go, and I think there’s a place for him to help us early in this season."
Patrick, who turns 32 this fall, finished sixth in Comeback Player of the Year voting last season after missing the 2022-23 seasons with the Denver Broncos because of injuries. He expressed frustration with his sluggish performance early in training camp, though he said his body was feeling "great" coming off his first full offseason in three years.
"This is my first time going through a camp like this,” Patrick said. “So yeah, I'm starting off a little slow, but I promise you by the time the season comes, I'm going to be firing on all cylinders."
A few days later, Campbell insisted he wasn't worried about Patrick's performance.
"He hasn’t been targeted a bunch," Campbell said. "That doesn’t help when you’re doing a lot of the dirty work and you really haven’t had many balls go your way. And you’re a receiver, that kind of, that makes it a little bit hard. But I would tell you it’s not as bad as he’s portraying it. Tim, we know what Tim is. He’s just a steady, reliable, veteran guy. Plays big, he’s smart, hard worker and, man, he's going to put his days back-to-back and he’s going to be just fine.”
The Lions have four open spots on their 53-man roster and could look to re-sign undrafted Jackson Meeks as their No. 6 receiver if he clears waivers at noon today.
Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams return as starting receivers, rookie seventh-round pick Dominic Lovett made the team as the No. 6 receiver and TeSlaa caught 10 passes for 146 yards and three touchdowns in the preseason.
ESPN reported the Lions plan to sign ex-Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas to one of their open roster spots.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions trade WR Tim Patrick to Jacksonville Jaguars
Category: Football
